Stepdog┬аis the hilarious and heartwarming tale of a woman who has finally met the man of her dreamsтАФand the dog of her nightmares.┬а
Winner of the June 2015 Elle Readers Prize
Lots of dogs eat shoes, bite people, destroy furniture . . . but Eddie tried to destroy a marriage.
After more than three decades of happy single womanhood, Mia Navarro wasnтАЩt really looking to change her relationship status. The idea of being a step-anything to anyone was foreign to her, something she never thought about. . . . Until she fell in love with Jim and agreed to marry him. As it turns out, the marriage is pretty wonderful, the stepkids were, well, typical pre-teens, the weather in Los Angeles perfect. But life is not spotless. The spots belong to JimтАЩs mutt, Eddie. Possessive and jealous, Eddie behaves like JimтАЩs mistressтАФif a mistress could bark and compete for space on his belovedтАЩs lap. As time goes on, a full-on war ensues. Mia slams the door in EddieтАЩs face, cordons off the house into dog- and wife-territories, and leaves the back door open . . . by, er, accident, of course. She even tries to leave Eddie behind in California when she and Jim abruptly relocate to New York. ┬аBut in the end, itтАЩs clear that not even a wife can come between man and dog. As Eddie ages, Mia softens, and as with any new family struggling to blend, the two must make peace with each other. Ultimately,┬аStepdog┬аis a triumphant story about finding love at an unexpected stage in life and the many unforeseen obstaclesтАФnot only of the four-legged varietyтАФthat can get in the way on the road to happily ever after.